Michael Gove 'Axes' To Kill A Mockingbird & Other American Works From GCSE Syllabus

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Link: Michael Gove 'axes' To Kill a Mockingbird and other American classics from English literature GCSE syllabus - Education News - Education - The Independent

 

...The Education Secretary said students ought to focus on works by British writers such as Jane Austen and Shakespeare, The Sunday Times reported.

 

OCR, one the UK’s biggest exam boards, told the newspaper: "Of Mice and Men, which Michael Gove really dislikes, will not be included. It was studied by 90 per cent of teenagers taking English literature GCSE in the past...

 

...Bethan Marshall, a senior lecturer in English at King's College, London, told The Sunday Times: “It's a syllabus out of the 1940s and rumour has it Michael Gove, who read literature, designed it himself.

 

“Schools will be incredibly depressed when they see it."

 

She added: “This will just grind children down."

 

[The referenced article from The Sunday Times is behind a paywall]

[sted]

isnt it time to loose Shakespeare that put me off reading for years during and after school

[ConradJones]

isnt it time to loose Shakespeare that put me off reading for years during and after school

 

I think this is a really interesting way of engaging students The Hip Hop Shakespeare Company | The Hip Hop Shakespeare Company (its not cheesy shakespeare in "yute speak")

[elsiegee40]

Thr irony is that I love seeing Shakespeare now; I get it. I didn't at school. With art, I enjoy the more modern, but don't get the classics. There is room for both on the syllabus, but making it so prescriptive that some brilliant texts get left out because they are too new or not British is worrying. People have to learn to love books for what they are. Edited May 25, 2014 by elsiegee40

[speckytecky]

My 16 year old daughter is a fabulous student and she holds a very low opinion of Shakespeare - often wondering why students are force fed 'classics' when there are far better Author of modern times who would make much more useful and interesting case studies.

 

As to Gove - why can't this man stop interfering all the time. He is gong to go down in history as the Secretary of State for a education who did the most damage to UK education ever. About time Cameron sacked the guy and replaced him with someone who can implement their so called party policy of leaving teachers to teach etc.

[elsiegee40]

Gove seems to have his eye on the top job. But, if he became leader of the tories, they would become unelectable.

[ConradJones]

But, if he became leader of the tories, they would become unelectable.

Almost tempted to say, well lets hope it gets it.! But tbh, it doesn't really matter who wins the election, the government always gets in.

[FN-GM]

or not British

 

What party is Mr Gove in again?

[Trapper]

Shakespeare needs to be seen, not read.

[markcuk]

Great news hated it still do!

[speckytecky]

Fair point Elsiegee40 but despite the fact that many of their candidates are already unelectable they still get elected by the pin the vote on the blue rosette syndrome. The 'I've always voted Conservative' blue rinse brigade. The whole electoral system is a crock. That said I don't know what could be done to make it better. The Lib Dems beat on about Proportional Representation (which comes in several formats) but unfortunately the stupid 'Party List' system thrust upon the Country for recent European Elections is a real heap of poo. First past the post would even have been more meaningful.

 

 

Gove seems to have his eye on the top job. But, if he became leader of the tories, they would become unelectable.

Edited May 26, 2014 by elsiegee40

[speckytecky]

That'll be the we closely look after each other's interests party and the country comes second party!

 

What party is Mr Gove in again?

[ConradJones]

That'll be the we closely look after each other's interests party and the country comes second party!

 

Lookup Gove, Murdoch and education market.

[seawolf]

[sARCASM]

Yes, this makes perfect sense. I can't understand why Canadians, Americans or Australians study Shakespeare, Chaucer, Dickens, Tolkien, Orwell, Bronte, Eliot, C.S. Lewis, or Byron. I mean, of what relevence do any of these authors works have for anyone other than the British...sheesh!

[/sARCASM]

[Ephelyon]

@speckytecky, the "default vote" phenomenon applies to both Conservative and Labour voters. There have always been people who say "I have X background, I vote for X party", just as there have always been people who say "my family are from X area and if I supported any other football team I'd be disowned" (that's pretty much a quote from my Technician).

[sted]

That'll be the we closely look after each other's interests party and the country comes second party!

 

isnt that all of them in reality

[ConradJones]

"my family are from X area and if I supported any other football team I'd be disowned" (that's pretty much a quote from my Technician).

 

Hahaha do spill./

[GREED]

This man cannot help himself can he. EVERY time he opens his mouth he says something stupid.

 

Even at school I though Of Mice And Men was a brillaint book and even more so today it is so deep tragic. Not read Mockingbird so cannot comment. My friend last night said to me 'why don't they read harry potter?'

 

Bahahaha a aaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I went on for about a minute!

[ConradJones]

Watch out the thought police will be on to you soon.

[ComputingData]

imho (I haven't looked at Literature) the changes the changes to EYFS, KS1 and KS2 in the other subjects looks pretty good to me. They seem to have looked at what other countries steaming ahead of the UK are up to and have tweaked things to follow the same methods. Haven't looked beyond KS2 though, that might be a different story altogether.

[elsiegee40]

Fair point Elsiegee but despite the fact that many of their candidates are already unelectable they still get elected by the pin the vote on the blue rosette syndrome. The 'I've always voted Conservative' blue rinse brigade. The whole electoral system is a crock. That said I don't know what could be done to make it better. The Lib Dems beat on about Proportional Representation (which comes in several formats) but unfortunately the stupid 'Party List' system thrust upon the Country for recent European Elections is a real heap of poo. First past the post would even have been more meaningful.

 

Believe me... I live in a blue part of the country. I honestly wish my vote would count, but all it does is reduce the torie majority slightly.

Edited May 26, 2014 by elsiegee40

[elsiegee40]

This man cannot help himself can he. EVERY time he opens his mouth he says something stupid.

 

Even at school I though Of Mice And Men was a brillaint book and even more so today it is so deep tragic. Not read Mockingbird so cannot comment. My friend last night said to me 'why don't they read harry potter?'

 

Bahahaha a aaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I went on for about a minute!

@GREED I thoroughly recommend Mockingbird which I read for the first time a couple of years ago when my son studied it for AS. I also recommend following it up with The Help which is written on a similar theme. Both get you thinking.

[pcstru]

As I understand it the changes do not say you cannot use "of mice and men", rather they say you must read something from a 20thC British Author. So it would be entirely possible to read (say) "1984" AND "of mice and men".

[ConradJones]

Reading 1984 would not be a bad thing. Excellent author.

[Andrew_C]

Maybe 1984 and Brave New World should be compulsory reading. Kids might learn to see through the lies being told to them.